Under the cut are 20 mini-fic for a 20-in-20 challenge. All the fics are from different character's POV (part of the fic challenge) but all the fic are about Jack Bauer. My 24 obsession is coming into focus. The quality of some of these little fics is a little questionable, but the challenge ends in 2 hours and I'm not going to keep fiddling with them. Well, not tonight. I may give them some space and fiddle with them before I post them somewhere else. I think they are all readable, though. And yes, I realize that the 24 fandom is very small and the amount of fic writers and readers is even smaller, but hey, you have to write what inspires you, right? Just so you know, I have put the character that is the POV of the fic at the end of each mini-fic, along with what season they appeared in.

In the challenge they gave us 20 different occupations/jobs, and I got creative off of them. I also freely admit that I really have a hard time writing this short of fic. And, because I wrote them in the past three days and haven't had time to proof, the editing may be questionable. Read at your own risk.

athleteHe worked out every day. Most days, both morning and night. Not because he wanted perfection or because he wanted to be an athlete. No he worked out every day because he still could feel Jack Bauer's arm around his throat, still feel the desperate helplessness that came from not being able to even slow down his attack. So he worked out, day and night, never quite managing to work past the fear that followed him.Unnamed character, Day 1

judgeHe'd watched Jack Bauer kill a man. When he first talked about it -- once he had been able to talk about it -- he used the term "cold blooded" but now he realized that it wasn't cold blooded, it was just detached. Jack judged him and found him guilty. The execution was the only rational choice.Unnamed character, Day 2

performerLiving the life he did, Eddie had to be a good judge of character. People who weren’t, died early on. He could recognize a kindred spirit instantly; know if he’d be a brother-in-arms or someone to kick to the side. Jack was that brother-in-arms. Someone who would walk into the fires of hell with just an empty bucket, all because you asked him too. He knew this. He worked with Jack. He’d drank with Jack. They had been friends. He couldn’t believe that Jack was holding a gun on him, telling him he was a fed, arresting him. He’d seen that cold, killing edge in Jack that he’d recognized as equal to his own the moment they met. How could that have been an act?Eddie Grant, Day 2

childShe had been told that the man who had saved her daughter was called Jack Bauer. She'd tried to track him down but it seemed that once the chaos had settled no-one had any knowledge of who he was. But she remembered the name when it appeared in the news years later, attached to someone who was now labeled a terrorist and traitor. Her daughter, however, insisted that the news had it wrong, that he was an angel, the soft-spoken man who had saved her. She chose to believe her daughter.Original Character (mother of child saved in day 5)

royalThere had been a time when he thought that working for the Bauer's was like serving royalty. The dreadful drive and dedication that pushed them to be who they were made them great but it sacrificed the normal family bond. It was only after that dreadful day that he realized they weren't royalty at all, just characters caught up in a Shakespearean tragedy.Sam (butler in Bauer household), Day 6

military rankThe Secret Service had its hierarchy, and even though it didn't follow any military branch, they did report to the President. They were bound by the codes and rules and chain of command as much as the military was. He’d gone most of his life believing in the strength of that, relying on those around him to be as good and decent and honorable as he was, relying on the fact that those he served were worthy of being served. Turned out that the most honorable man he'd ever meet, didn't have any rank at all and was all too often seen as an enemy of the state. The only thing that kept his faith in his country was that Jack Bauer still kept faith in his country.Aaron Pierce

secretaryHe was a man of conviction, of sound decisions and unwavering loyalty. God, Country, family, friends: He prided himself on his devotion to those four things. Being a man of politics, he’d occasionally had to make minor sacrifices to one in order to protect another, but there was only one action he regretted. Only on time when he knew that his choice was wrong, when his actions were intentionally designed to hurt, to destroy someone whom he truly cared for, someone he considered family. He knew that betrayal set the path for everything that happened afterwards, that it set adrift someone who needed to be grounded, someone who deserved to be saved. But this was his daughter who was at risk, his daughter who he'd already lost once to her own unwavering loyalty to Jack. He couldn't risk losing her again and he knew that he would. So he sacrificed Jack, instead. James Heller

parentJosh changed his name just months after his father died. His mom supported the idea when he brought it up. Living with the name Bauer was just too much of a liability. They choose his mother’s grandmother’s maiden name. His mom said it was still family but not recognizable to those who came searching for them. And people did come searching for them. Even now, so many years after it all, they still came searching. The only reason he answered the door to strangers was on the hope, that one day, who ever was on the other side would lead him back to Jack and he would finally get some answers. Josh Bauer, Day 6

lawyerThey asked him if he wanted “counsel” to help him with his testimony. People who wanted to question him always wanted to make sure that he had “counsel”. As if the questions they asked would be too difficult for him to understand or that he would need to be told when he was saying things that may get him in trouble. Jack didn’t need counsel, he didn’t need help determining the right way to answer a question. He had the truth. And if that wasn’t enough to keep him out of jail, so be it.Jack Bauer

studentThe name Jack Bauer can be found on several trophies at his old high school. Aged and dusty, they sit in the back of the locked trophy case, the name etched on them carefully hidden. There had been a push to remove them entirely, after Jack's attack on the Russian delegation. But too many people remembered how he'd stopped the bombing of LA, how he'd brought down Logan. So they compromised and hid the trophies away, as if they just couldn't decide which man he really was.

medicalShe didn't take sides in political arguments. She figured it mattered more what you did, than what you said. She'd done two tours with Doctor's Without Boarders and she worked for the National Health Services and the CDC. While she had accepted that her actions in those roles could be dangerous and controversial, she never expected that saving someone's life, the fundamental responsibility of every doctor, would put her in the middle of a political firestorm. Then again, she’s come to learn that anything to do with Jack Bauer – even saving his life – wasn’t without risk.Dr. Sunny Mercer, Day 3 & 7

reporterHe'd tried to do justice to the Bauer story, when it first broke. He'd tried to dig up the old records, talk to people who'd actually been there and saw what happened. Turned out that there wasn't very many of them. Well, that wasn't exactly true. There were a lot of people willing to talk, but none of them were willing to talk openly. He'd had enough "off the record" chats to fill a book, but none of the publishers were foolish enough to publish it.Original character

scientistHe felt like a bug under a microscope, a moth pinned to a display board. There was just something about the way the man stared at him that chilled him to the bone. "I know you're lying to me," he's said. He hadn't yelled, or even raised his voice, but it chilled him to the bone anyhow. "You don't want to lie to me." He didn't.Unnamed character, Day 3

superheroMost people thought Superheroes were just made up. Fictional characters who swooped in, all flash and thunder, with special powers and fancy costumes. But Derek knew better, he'd seen a superhero in action. A man who had no reason to care for him at all, who still risked everything to save him. A man who willingly gave himself over to people who were going to kill him. Who knelt down beside him, no gun, no power, no chance of escape and said "This isn't over yet."Derek Huxley, Day 5

politicianHe'd spent his life pursuing right and good and justice. It's true he chose to do so as a politician, but he'd been an honest politician -- or at least as honest as he could be and still get things done. In the end, though, it was always done in the pursuit of truth. The Senate hearings were going to be his crowning achievement, he'd help usher in a better government by shining a spotlight on all evils of the previous one and putting the last nail into the old, corrupt regime. The key to that was imprisoning Jack Bauer as the final condemnation of the old, lawless wild-west mentality. The irony that he was dying right when he'd discovered how wrong he'd been wasn't lost on him. The fact that his final thoughts were thoughts of concern for Bauer and hope that he would do whatever he had to do to stop this threat to the country that he loved? Well, that hurt almost more than the bullets did.Senator Blaine Mayer, Day 7

musicianHe sat like a favorite melody playing over and over in the back of her head. The place she always went to find comfort and safety. No one around her ever spoke his name. She’d learned that speaking it herself would only result in doctor visits, long days of enforced convalescence and endless worry over her state of mind. She knew they loved her and they only wanted to keep her safe and healthy. They were frightened that even his memory would hurt her. But they were wrong. Jack would never hurt her. Never. What had happened to her wasn’t his fault. Even when the Chinese had her, even in the very worst of that drug induced nightmare, she knew that it wasn’t his fault. That he would save her in the end. And he did. He saved her from the Chinese and he still saved her. Every day, when the nightmares and the PTSD threatened to drag her back to hell, she would think of him, remember his smile, relive his laughter, imagine his strong arms keeping her safe and she knew that she could overcome it. She would never see him again, she’d never even be able to speak his name, but he was always with her. Saving her.Audrey Raines

law enforcementThe name Jack Bauer rippled through the US Marshal's department like the boogieman most thought him to be. The stories of his lawlessness and his attacks on officers who were just doing their jobs were usually attributed to over zealous trainers and gullible recruits. Until the boogieman became the world's most wanted.

artistIt hung on his wall, a piece of modern art: strings and markers and post it notes almost obscuring the world map that had been taped up there five years ago. It had started out as a simple desire for revenge but it had evolved into a inexplicable obsession. He was the world's expert on the whereabouts and activities of Jack Bauer. He knew more about the man than anyone, than any agency, than any government. He knew that he could be a rich man, a famous man, if he'd jsut share what he knew. Only, he couldn't. Bauer was his in a way he couldn't explain. So he kept his wall up to date, kept his sources quiet and kept watch on Bauer's moves. Theo Stoller, Day 5

villainIf it were your actions that determined if you were good or bad, righteous or evil, they would both burn in hell. He was sure of that. And despite all the wicked things he'd done in the past four years, he was sure that Bauer would still earn top position on the scale of guilt. But there was this lingering doubt, this nagging fear, that the intention behind the action mattered, that the goal counted and that redemption lay not in repentance or penance but in a desire to do good and protect innocence. The thought that Bauer could somehow be better, be forgiven, be righteous fueled his hatred, iced his thoughts. If there were no guarantee of punishment in the next life, he'd sure as hell make sure Bauer was punished in this one.Tony Alameda, Day 7

teacherThe voice in his ear was calm and analytical, not at all like the drill sergeants and hand-to-hand instructors that trained him since he had joined the Navy. It was rough and gravelly, but still soft and colored with certain amount of regret. Hold the weapon tightly, cover his mouth with the left hand and slice deep to keep him from calling out. Killing instructions given from a master of the trade.Petty Officer Tim Rooney, Day 5